Turkey's military says its warplanes have bombed suspected Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq in a third straight night of cross-border strikes.

The military said Saturday that 85 other rebel targets were hit with artillery fire.

The strikes follow a surge in attacks by Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels against the Turkish military.

Ankara launched the latest air raids on Wednesday after PKK rebels ambushed a military convoy in Turkey, killing at least eight Turkish soldiers near the border with Iraq.

Turkey has promised a renewed crackdown on the PKK. Earlier this week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara's "patience is running out" with the rebels, who have waged a campaign for autonomy in the country's largely Kurdish southeast since 1984. The conflict has killed more than 40,000 people.

On Thursday, PKK rebels struck at least two military positions in Siirt province in southern Turkey. Turkish media reported the attacks killed at least two soldiers and wounded three civilians.

Turkey, the United States, and the European Union consider the PKK a terrorist group.

Since calling off a cease-fire in February, the PKK has adopted what it calls an "active defense" stance, which allows its fighters to defend themselves if they feel threatened.

The U.S. Embassy in Ankara expressed condolences for the soldiers killed Wednesday and said the United States stands with Turkey in its fight against the PKK.